The color of the Evening Sky
by Iduna-Haya
Summary: This story is mainly about Toshiro Hitsugaya and a new girl: Sora Kitamoto. It won't always be a nice story, but I hope you will like it. This is how Í see Hitsugaya, so he might seem a bit different. It is set a couple of decades after the adventures with Ichigo and the others, they are not included in the story. English is my second language, so I apologize for any mistakes.


**Disclaimer: Naturally, all of the original Bleach characters, the world of the Shinigami, and the whole concept of Bleach belong to Tite Kubo. I do not intend to steal his story, I only wish to put one of my favorite characters on a pedestal, and give him the attention he deserves.**

_She wasn't sure where she was going. All she knew was that she wanted to get away. And so she walked for hours, never looking back, until finally she could walk no more._

**Chapter 1: new recruits - Toshiro Hitsugaya**

"Have you heard? This year they had four students at the academy who graduated early."

"I heard one of them completed the whole program in only one year! That hasn't happened since Gin Ichimaru graduated.."

"Apparently two of them are women, and I heard they're real lookers!"

"I hear one of the girls is actually going to Squad 11. A woman, in Squad 11!"

Captain Hitsugaya of quad ten snorted, and kept walking. It had been like this for days now. Everywhere he went people were talking about the four new recruits who were entering the 13 Court Guard Squads today. He couldn't really blame them. It was rare enough for people to graduate early, although there were usually one or two each year who managed to do the whole program in four or five years. But this year there were four. One had needed only three years, which was exceptional enough. But two of them had needed only two years. And one had completed the program in only one year, making her the talk of the Seireitei. Even the captains ware talking about it whenever they met.

As for Toshiro, he didn't really understand what all the commotion was about, and frankly, he was starting to get annoyed about it. Sure, they graduated early. Very early. But that meant that they had less experience in the field. They would still have to prove themselves. Being a fast learner did not necessarily mean that you were going to be a good Shinigami. On top of that, according to the files he had received from the Headmaster, the four of them had spent their time at the Academy constantly getting in and out of trouble. Apparently they tended to skip classes and disappear, only appearing again whenever they felt like it. They might be geniuses, but to Hitsugaya they sounded more like arrogant brats. And he would have to deal with it, because one of them was joining Squad 10. As he entered his office he sighed, and decided to reread the information the Headmaster had given him. He was supposed to meet the girl and the other new recruits in ten minutes, and he wanted to be prepared.

At exactly 9 o'clock there was a knock on the door. He stood up. "Come in". Five new Shinigami entered his office. The files had contained no pictures, but since there was only one woman among them there was no doubt as to which one was the supposed genius. According to her file her name was Sora Kitamoto. She was the only one who didn't seem nervous. The rumours had been right: she was beautiful. He took a few seconds to examine her. She was about 165 centimetres tall, with a slender waist that was accentuated by the way she wore her Shihakusho. Her pale blond hair was long, and she wore it in a long braid that hung over her right shoulder. On the left she wore a small blue bead in her hair. The most noticeable about her were her eyes. They were a very dark blue: the colour of the evening sky. As he was looking into her eyes he suddenly realised that she was looking at him just as intently as he was looking at her. He looked away quickly and went on to take examine at the others. They were quite uninteresting, except for one guy that had an air of arrogance over him despite of his nerves. "Welcome in the Gotei 13, and welcome in Squad 10. I am Captain Hitsugaya. I expect all of you to do your very best while under my command. You are obliged to attend all training classes, unless I determine otherwise. At 10 o'clock training will start in the training grounds, as they do every weekday. For now you can go to your barracks, where there will be someone waiting for you to show where you will be staying. Your possessions will arrive shortly. There are a few things I need to discuss with Takahashi and Kitamoto the rest of you is dismissed." Three of the men left, looking slightly crestfallen after this short but stern speech. Kitamoto and the guy with the arrogant face stayed behind. "Both of you finished the program of the Academy in less than the given time. This means that you are likely to be more skilled than your fellow Shinigami. However, therefore I will not immediately assign you to a seated position. I have received files on both of you, so I have a general idea of your strengths and weaknesses. However, the only way for me to get more complete and accurate picture of your capabilities is by assessing them myself. Therefore I will be present at most of the training sessions this week. II think you are capable enough you will be assigned a seat at the end of the next week. Is that clear?" "Yes Captain", both of them responded. By now, the girl was smiling, seemingly not affected at all by this news. The guy however seemed slightly disappointed and a little insulted that his capabilities were questioned. He had clearly expected to be assigned a ranked position immediately. "You are dismissed". Both of them gave a little head bow and turned to leave. At the door the girl turned around, her eyes clearly amused by something, and said "I look forward to working under your command, Captain". She gave him a smile, exposing a few white teeth, turned around again and left, closing the door behind her. Hitsugaya sat down again, closed his eyes and leaned backwards. _Damn_, he thought. _This is going to be troublesome_.

At 10 o'clock he was present at the training grounds. Surprisingly, Matsumoto was also present for a change, driven by her curiosity about the new recruits. Today there would be speed training. Unranked Shinigami rarely achieved Shunpo, but they were expected to attain a certain speed.

According to her files, Kitamoto was specialised in Shunpo, but he wanted to see for himself exactly how fast she was, at natural speed and at Shunpo. After only a few minutes it was clear that her natural speed was excellent. She had no trouble at all with any of the movements, and the exercise hardly seemed to tire her. He also started to understand why her teachers had described her as 'uninterested, insolent, and disrespectful of the teaching authority'. Although she did exactly what the trainer was telling her to do, and did it flawlessly, one only needed to look at her to see that she wasn't really paying attention. The expression of her face was one of concentration, but her mind was clearly somewhere else. She didn't even seem to notice the glances the others were shooting at her, obviously impressed by her looks and her reputation. Knowing the teachers of the academy, who tended to be a bit stuck up, Toshiro could see how they would regard this as unacceptable behaviour. He, on the other hand, couldn't give a damn, as long as she did her best. During the break he called her name, and beckoned her to come over. "Captain?" "According to your files, aside from having a good natural speed, you are also able to do Shunpo. Is that correct?" "Yes Captain". "Come with me." He started to walk towards the other side of the training grounds. "Those who are able to do Shunpo are not required to do follow the normal training routines, although I do did insist on them joining the rest of the Squad at least once a month so as not to neglect your natural speed. Instead, you practice on the other side of the training grounds. Sometimes I or lieutenant Matsumoto will join you to lead the training, but usually you will train on your own or together." "Understood".

Matsumoto appeared on Sora's other side, looking excited. "Soo, you're the one everyone's been talking about, hmmm?!" Sora gave the redheaded lieutenant an amused look. "Am I?". "Well, yes of course you are! You didn't think you could graduate from the Academy in only one year and not have people talk about you, right? You've been the talk of the Gotei 13 for days!" "Well, I'm glad to hear I was able to provide some entertainment". They arrived at the spot where a couple of members of Squad 10 were practicing their Shunpo. Or, to be exact, not practising their Shunpo, because at the moment they were lounging in the grass. Captain Hitsugaya raised one eyebrow and coughed. Immediately they all stood up and bowed. "Captain Hitsugaya, we were just, ehm, about to continue our training!" Ignoring the obvious lie Hitsugaya said "This is Sora Kitamoto, one of our new recruits. She will be joining the Shunpo training from now on." At once all eyes shot towards the girl, who once again seemed oblivious of the attention. She smiled and gave a little nod to acknowledge them. "Nice to meet you." The men nodded back and mumbled something in return. Hitsugaya continued: "today I will be leading the training. Take your positions and start with the following exercises. Kitamoto, you can stand next to Takezoe."

For a while Toshiro gave them all a series of instructions, which they were to perform at once. Sora flawlessly followed every instruction, seemingly without much effort. After a while, he decided to take the training to a higher level, to see what would happen. Although they were trying to hide it, it was clear that the others hadn't improved since the last time he had supervised a Shunpo training. It seemed they had spent more time examining the grass than training. Sora, however, had no trouble with the raised degree of difficulty. The more difficult the assignment, the more she seemed to enjoy it. She was finally paying attention. Then he told them to pair up for a one-on-one sparring match, using only Hakuda and Shunpo. He shot a sideway glance at Rangiku. _I wonder…_ "Matsumoto, you pair up with Kitamoto". "What, why?" Rangiku said with wide eyes. "Because I say so. Besides, there's an uneven number of participants in the training". Mumbling a curse Rangiku got up and went to stand in front of Sora. She gave a little bow, which was a sign of courtesy commonly shown to you training partner. "Ok genius, let's see what you're made of", she said with a smile. Sora gave her a wide smile in return, and also bowed. "Be careful what you wish for lieutenant."

As soon as Toshiro gave the signal, the two went for each other. At first Rangiku held back, thinking that she shouldn't go too hard on the new girl. But she soon realised that there was no need to hold back. This girl was fast. They both kept their Reiatsu low, relying solely on their speed and technique. To Toshiro's trained eye it was clear that Rangiku had the advantage when it came to technique. She had decades of experience in fighting. Still, for a new recruit who had only spent one year at the Academy, Kitamoto was doing surprisingly well. On top of that, the files had been right: Her Shunpo skills were excellent. She was practically an expert, which gave her an advantage over Rangiku, who had never managed to get beyond the first level. As a result, in a fight that was determined solely by speed and skill, they were almost evenly matched. It didn't take the other pairs long to notice something was going on, and one by one they stopped their own fight to watch their lieutenant and the new girl flash over the grass. Toshiro checked the time. Training time was over, but the two were still at it, clearly enjoying their fight. Rangiku had a look of amazement on her face, accompanied by a determined smile, and Sora had a wide smile on her face, her eyes gleaming with excitement. After a few more minutes he decided that it was enough. "End of training!", he shouted. Rangiku and Sora came to a halt a few meters apart, facing each other. They were both panting. They both stood op straight and gave each other a little bow again.

"Sora!" On the border of the Squad 10 training grounds stood three figures, one female and two males. The young woman had bright long, bright red hair, which she wore in a sort of double ponytail. The tall young man also wore his long black hair in a ponytail. The other male was still a boy, with a pair of glasses on his nose, his messy brown hair pointing in all directions. The boy called out again. "Hey, Sora!" She looked at Toshiro. He nodded. "The training is over, you can do whatever you want". She gave them a short head bow, "Captain, lieutenant", and then she disappeared, appearing at the side of her friends almost immediately. The boy immediately started talking excitedly about something. As they watched them go, Rangiku said: "So those are the other three, eh?". "I suppose so", Toshiro answered. "Is she as good at the other disciplines?", Rangiku continued. "According to her files Shunpo is her specialty, but Hado is a good second." "Well, then I look forward to the training on Wednesday. But I think I will join you at the other training sessions as well. See you tomorrow Captain," Rangiku said cheerfully. Before he realised what she was saying she was gone. Damn. She was supposed to do some paperwork today, but it seemed that he would have to do it himself again. He looked up at the sky and wondered what he had done to deserve by far the laziest lieutenant in the whole Gotei 13, before he started to walk in the direction of his office. It was going to be late night again.


End file.
